By BWilliams / 11:23, 10 October 2005 / Reviews - Products

Battlestar Galactica - Season 1
DVD

Price: $59.98
Pub Date: September 2005

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Introduction:

I'm an old-school fan of the original BATTLESTAR GALACTICA from the 1970's. For all its worth, the original series (as well as its equally short-lived spin-off GALACTICA 1980) had an epic, bombastic feel worth its weight in Boston cheddar. Coming on the heels of the overwhelming success of the first STAR WARS film (despite it ironically being conceived several years prior to STAR WARS), everyone and their brothers attempted to cash in with different film and television projects (part of which ultimately led to the development of the first STAR TREK motion picture), some of which met with less than enthusiastic success. There was also a kind of religious feel to the original GALACTICA, with references taken from many ancient religious texts. Of course, there were also the campy rip-offs of and nods to STAR WARS, with Captain Apollo (Richard Hatch) a takeoff of Luke Skywalker, Lt. Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) from Han Solo, Commander Adama (Lorne Greene) from Obi-Wan Kenobi and other characters, and the nasty Cylon robot soldiers an all-too-obvious poke at the Imperial stormtroopers. Still, there was a certain quality to the original BATTLESTAR GALACTICA that kept it from dying in the fans' minds over the decades, including a number of spin-off novels and comics, and despite a feature film pilot that was ultimately folded into 24 episodes that didn't last the first season, it was nevertheless a good attempt.

Enter Ronald D. Moore. The former writer/producer from STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, its feature film sequels GENERATIONS and FIRST CONTACT, and STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE had wanted to revamp GALACTICA and give it a modern-day twist with a degree of edginess and intensity not seen in the original version of the series. It's harder, grittier, more realistic, and ultimately more human, with realistic character flaws that people can relate to. Together with executive producer David Eick, Moore and miniseries director Michael Rymer gave us a new GALACTICA for the 21st century. Everything that you used to remember about the original series"? forget it.

Moore's version of GALACTICA follows in a similar format as original series creator Glen A. Larson's 1970s concept, but with quite a number of unique twists to it. After decades of war between humans and Cylons, it seems as if peace may be finally at hand. But a new Cylon robot model has emerged, one that looks all too human. That's only because humans had created the Cylons to begin with. In a sweeping attack, Cylon forces barrage the planet Caprica in a nuclear assault and kill billions of humans, including assaults upon numerous battleships and civilian vessels, in an attempt to wipe out all of humanity. On the verge of retirement, Commander William Adama (convincingly played by Edward James Olmos) is called back into action as leader of the last remaining battleship Galactica to rescue Caprica's remaining survivors. Leading the reorganization of the Galactica's military forces is Commander Adama's son Lee (Jamie Bamber), code-named Apollo, who has a chip on his shoulder and blames his father for the death of his younger brother Zak. Then there's Lt. Kara Thrace (Katee Sackhoff), a hardened military officer and latter-day Tasha Yar who isn't afraid of shooting down Cylon fighters, conniving her fellow shipmates at poker, blowing more smoke than she can smoke from her cigars, and repeatedly finding herself in the brig due to insubordination at the hands of Colonel Saul Tigh (Michael Hogan). If Kara's character sounds a bit familiar, she should: her code name is Starbuck. We also have Lt. Sharon Valerii (played by the lovely Grace Park), codenamed Boomer, who has a bit of a thing going with Chief Petty Officer Tyrol. Realizing that they've just had their asses handed to them, Commander Adama and the newly-sworn President Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell) agree to lead the survivors in search of the mythical 13th colony of Kobol, otherwise known as Earth.

From there Moore's version of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA really diverts from the campy, epic STAR WARS rip-off the original series had been and takes off in many incredible new directions. What initially bothered some fans was the fact that Moore and company had changed the characters of Starbuck and Boomer into females. For that matter, Moore's perception of Baltar has changed from John Colicos' original portrayal as a power-hungry mad leader to Dr. Gaius Baltar (James Callis), a more relatable, down-to-Earth scientist with flaws, failings, and a guilty conscience. Of course, there are numerous winks and nods to the original series, and those are easily recognizable throughout the miniseries, but Moore's revamp also takes advantage of cutting-edge storytelling and visual effects. No longer are the Cylons a poor attempt to cash in on the stormtroopers from the original STAR WARS; now they resemble the automated battle droids from the STAR WARS prequels. But what's even deadlier is that there's now a new kind of Cylon on the scene, one that looks and feels all too deceptively human. The recurring Cylon robot known only as Number Six (Tricia Helfer) looks and appears all the more seductive and all the more human, a latter-day Data in the making. Even the Cylon warships are automated, again a nod to the STAR WARS prequels. And the Galactica herself is modeled after many modern-day naval carriers and submarines.

But if the changes and updates to the characters are one thing, the stories are another. Gone are the obvious attempts to rip off STAR WARS with bombastic scores, cheesy characters, and gee-whiz flashy visuals that continually overtook the stories in the original series' incarnation. Now we have harder, faster-paced, tighter stories with an obvious slant toward realism and intensity never before explored in this kind of manner. When the Cylon forces attack the Galactica in the miniseries, the plot focuses as much on the rescue attempts of the emergency responders as on the attack itself. We see realistic preparations in the launch bay and dogfights in space that mirror modern-day military tactics. We see character failings in the cast: Adama's weariness, President Roslin's attempt to lead the survivors despite her own battle with breast cancer, Tigh's alcoholism, Kara's guilt over Zak Adama's death and their own past relationship, Lee's adversity toward his father, Baltar's neuroses and quirks. And believe it or not, there's no annoying mechanical dog named Muffy in sight around here (though Moore did bring Boxey back, which can be forgiven). And everything is seen through a documentary-style filter, giving it an added layer of realism straight out of BLACK HAWK DOWN and SAVING PRIVATE RYAN that the original series totally neglected. Little things like these were completely missing from STAR TREK the last several years; if the franchise had addressed them, perhaps we could have had a new TREK for the new century. Somebody had to push the envelope forward. Thank goodness for Ron Moore.

Of course, it wouldn't be a science fiction series without cutting-edge visual technology. If it weren't for STAR WARS, we wouldn't have all of the television series and films that continue to push the envelope for bigger and more spectacular visual effects. The new BATTLESTAR GALACTICA continues in that tradition, but with more emphasis on realism. When the Galactica and the Cylons square off in outer space, the dog fights look convincingly real. Nuclear explosions rock the ship and the planet in such graphically realistic ways. Yet this version of GALACTICA does not capitalize on the visual effects to detract from the story; the main story still belongs to the people on the scene. And that's one of the key successes of the new incarnation that the original missed, the heart of humanity.

If the miniseries was intense, then the 13 episodes that followed in 2005 were just as equally intense as anything in film or on television. Picking up five days after the events of the miniseries, the series' first episode '33' finds the crew continually on the run from the Cylons, only to come under attack every 33 minutes from their automated enemies. It goes without saying that '33' is perhaps some of the best television ever created, period; it's that intense. In 'Water', a mysterious explosion destroys most of the Galactica's water supply, forcing Commander Adama and President Roslin to control ensuing riots. This episode is extremely timely, especially following in the wake of the events of Hurricane Katrina. The follow-up 'Bastille Day' finds the Galactica crew searching an ice planet for a possible water source, while Apollo visits a prison transport to recruit volunteers for the mission. The only thing is, one of the prisoners, played by original series star Richard Hatch, attempts to lead the prisoners into a riot.

'Act of Contrition' finds Kara confronting her feelings and painful memories over the death of Adama's son Zak, when she is forced to train a new squadron of rookies to replace thirteen pilots who were killed in a hangar deck accident. Kara is also the focus of 'You Can't Go Home Again', as she disappears in the wake of a training mission gone awry at the hands of a Cylon patrol unit, causing Adama and Lee to do whatever it takes to bring her back alive. In 'Litmus' an explosion at the hands of a suicide Cylon bomber forces Adama and President Roslin to reveal the Cylons' subversive attempt to integrate aboard the ship by looking like humans. It's another timely episode that addresses modern-day issues of terrorism and suicide bombers, echoing all of the current actions in Iraq. Following on its heels is the equally timely 'Six Degrees of Separation', as the crew can now see the mysterious Number Six, and Adama must now decide whether or not to trust Baltar. (And to think Kevin Bacon was nowhere in sight during this episode!)

'Flesh and Bone' is an intense cat-and-mouse thriller that finds Kara and President Roslin at odds against a Cylon named Leobon when it's discovered that there's a nuclear bomb hidden on one of the starships. Tension continues to run high in 'Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down', when President Roslin suspects Adama of being a Cylon after making a number of secret phone calls. It doesn't get better when Adama is seen with Colonel Tigh's attractive yet estranged wife, leading to lots of personal, professional, and even sexual tension aboard the Galactica. 'The Hand of God' finds Kara proposing a deadly mission that could strand the Cylons in space forever, at the risk of the lives of all on board the Galactica. In 'Colonial Day', the election of the colonists' vice-president turns ugly when an assassin comes aboard, forcing President Roslin to select an unlikely person as her running mate.

The season's two-part finale, 'Kobol's Last Gleaming', finds the Galactica crew hopeful they have found a new home world able to sustain life. The only problem is, there's a Cylon starbase in their midst, and they must destroy the Cylons' base in order to claim the planet. But the crew may have a war on their hands when Kara disobeys Adama's orders at the request of President Roslin. It's up to one unlikely fighter pilot to make the decision to stop the Cylons and, in doing so, change the lives of the Galactica forever.

I know this sounds clichéd, but the new version of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is unlike anything you've seen before. It's intense, raw, in your face, cutting edge, and well-written and executed. And to think this was just the first season. There's only one thing I really miss about this new GALACTICA: there's no Laurette Spang (Cassiopea) anywhere. Man, did I have a crush on her big time when the original series was around. Oh well, you can't win them all, I guess.

The DVD Presentation:

This is a really great collection to have, because not only do you get all 13 episodes of the complete first season in one DVD set, but you also get the original two-part miniseries from 2004 included in the set as well! This is a wonderful decision on Universal's part, as it gives fans a complete look at the saga from the very beginning. Both the miniseries and the first season are packaged in five dual-layered discs, with the original miniseries encompassing Disc 1, the first 12 episodes on Discs 2 through 4, and the 13th episode and the bonus features on Disc 5.

The picture has a fast-paced, sometimes grainy, sometimes washed-out look to it. This is not a DVD manufacturing problem, but merely a deliberate decision on the part of the producers to make this new version of GALACTICA gritty, realistic, and documentary-like. Otherwise, the picture is extremely crisp. Both the miniseries and the 13 episodes of the first season are presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen format and in English Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, with your choice of English or Spanish subtitles. On a large high-definition monitor, this really does have an awesome cinematic look and feel to it. The sound quality is well-balanced with an immersive balance and feel to it. The only thing that would have made it even sweeter would have been a DTS track.

Packaging and Menus:

The packaging is a straightforward slipcover, with each disc housed in its own individual slim Amaray storage case, with cover artwork of the major cast members and episode synopses. Also included in the package is a promo trading card for the upcoming BATTLESTAR GALACTICA trading card set from SciFiHobby.com, as well as a flyer for the upcoming SciFi Channel miniseries THE TRIANGLE coming in December.

Menu design is straightforward, with options for playing all episodes, selecting individual episodes, language selection, or extras selection. It's odd that Discs 1-4 would include a separate sub-menu for choosing extras, when the only extras on those discs are audio commentaries. As you select each individual episode, you are given a synopsis of that particular episode, along with a miniature menu that allows you to play the episode, return to the main menu screen, access the audio commentary, or choose from the language options.